Consultants appointed to design County Library

Ireland's Clare County Council has announced the appointment of consultants for the design and delivery of the flagship County Library project in Ennis.

The proposed €8.6m project will replace the existing De Valera Library on Harmony Row. A full design team has been appointed to progress the design and planning phases of the new build project and the council anticipates that contractors could be on site during early 2017.

Earlier this year, Clare County Council was allocated a €3 million capital grant towards the cost of the proposed project under the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government’s Capital Funding Programme for Public Libraries. An additional €1 million in EU funding was also allocated from the Southern Regional Assembly’s Operational Programme 2014-2020. Clare County Council will fund the balance of €4.6 million of the overall cost of the project.

Helen Walsh, Clare County Librarian, commented: “Ireland has seen some ambitious library buildings developed in the last decade and some outstanding and beautiful architectural structures have been achieved as a result. It is envisioned that the new County Library will be one of these buildings combining technologically advanced services whilst keeping the customer at the heart of service delivery. It truly will be a library for the 21st century."